Jonathan Hewlett is the CEO and Venture Founder of w’air Sustainable Clothing Care, a pioneering technology that enables quicker and greener clothing care. He leads an agile team of experts to bring exciting new technology to market across a variety of consumer product categories, and as a result developed w’air, an innovative technology driven by a change in consumer and retailer behaviour to transform the way we interact with our clothing for good.

Why do you think now is the right time for the world to begin exploring and adopting technology that aids sustainability, like w’air?

Economically sustainable growth initiatives are now firmly on the agenda for most large businesses in any sector, so w’air is very relevant in today’s world where people are beginning to explore sustainable technology. 

The fashion industry is definitely ‘waking up’ to this need. As demonstrated by a raft of declarations in recent time, the amount of clothing and accessories on offer which are described as “sustainable” has quadrupled among online retailers in the US and UK.

Consumers are really leading the way; they are demanding change from brands they love and spending more time and money on brands that share their values. The recent pandemic ‘pause’ button has seen normal life grind to a halt, there has been less travel, fewer shopping trips and less clothing bought. This combined with the changing political situation in the US, sustainability has once again been given the space to take centre stage in the global debate.

What’s the overall vision behind your business and where did the inspiration come from?

Our vision is to create positive change in the laundry category. We want to revolutionise the way we care for our clothes and fabrics and help consumers and businesses do so more sustainably.

The inspiration came from our discovery of a pioneering technology within one of our major corporate partners - they had researched and created the technology but had not yet done anything with it. This is where we saw the opportunity to develop the technology into a product.

Fast fashion evolved rapidly over the last 10 years - with the aid of cheaper production costs, lower quality and low retail selling prices. How do you think we can get to a place where sustainability takes precedence over sale price?

Even though fast fashion has taken off, consumer demand for sustainable products is growing massively. The challenge we have is that whilst the industry’s marketing is shifting towards the ultra-green, the reality is very different. The idea of creating ‘the most sustainable jeans ever’, with ‘positive impact’ and ‘negative waste’, as some brands claim, is simply invalid and also expensive, a cost often passed on to the consumers. 

For most, the trade off between cost and environmental impact is something they face with any purchase. I believe that continued education on how damaging our choices in fashion have become and continued growth of up-cycling and restoration initiatives are the best ways to shift the scales towards positive environmental change. 

Companies focused on second-hand fashion, rentals and up-cycling, such as Depop, Rent the Runway, The Real Real, SneakersER and Re-Story are now some of the go-to places for consumers today. They are perfect examples of how we can extend the lifecycle of our clothing and shoes and reduce landfill.

In addition, the influencers we are following are also embracing this shift. They are moving their messaging away from ’never be seen in the same thing twice’ to ‘responsible fashion’, working to the remove the ideal of an always changing wardrobe that supports fast fashion.

From what I understand, regardless of our environmental choices, the earth will bounce back - with or without us. What advice would you give to consumers to place more pressure on their favourite fashion brands to choose sustainability?

What is interesting here is that consumers hold an extraordinary amount of power thanks to social media. Brands are more conscious than ever of being ‘called out’ when they fail to act responsibly and increasingly, we are seeing brands responding positively to this with change initiatives to address the environmental issues. Through their choices, consumers can change and shape the world they live in. When it comes to supporting brands which are showing strong sustainability credentials and ambitions, voting with our wallets is the best form of pressure we can apply!

What would be your top three tips to early-stage founders to hire and develop talent?

Firstly, look for knowledge and experience but hire on attitude - the others can be learnt.

Secondly, be clear on the brief from the start. Any early hire will almost certainly need to 'wear a huge number of hats’ to gain broad experience rather than necessarily being a specialist in any area. This can be exciting for some people but daunting for others. 

Lastly, constantly re-frame and challenge their deliverables so that they can continue to develop alongside the project. In an early-stage venture, it is all too easy to get super task-focused and forget that the team needs time and attention for their development too. Work hard to maintain that balance.

How did you fund the launch of in the initial stages w’air?

w’air is backed by Pilot Lite, a pioneer and international leader in venture management with a successful track record of both helping multi-national corporations accelerate the commercialise their R&D and innovation, and supporting the launch of viable, valuable and sustainable technology ventures.”

Pilot Lite helps to identify, de-risk, validate and launch early-stage technologies, new ventures and stranded intellectual property across developed and emerging channels and markets.

How does w’air work and what impact will it have on your target audience?

w’air uses hydrodynamic technology, which uses a combination of air, water, detergent, pressure, flow rate and geometry, to create a micronised spray that has highly efficacious cleaning properties. This results in a powerful cleaning action at a low pressure and liquid flow rate - meaning that it is quick, less messy and suitable for a wide range of materials (even delicates).

We’re hoping that it will provide the target audience with the ability to reduce the amount of laundry done significantly, to remove spots and stains in a less abrasive way and to lower dry-cleaning bills thanks to the ability to deep clean with the device. In addition, w’air is also great on any kinds of fabric so, for example, trainers, upholstery and car interiors can also benefit. We’re hoping that our target market delights in the versatility of w’air for cleaning in daily life.

You’ve recently launched in Selfridges. Congratulations! What was that moment like for you?

Thanks! It was a great moment - to be showcased by such a prestigious, world-renowned department store chain, one which  is also a leader in driving the sustainability agenda amongst retailers, has been the best possible introduction for w’air. Personally, I’ve worked with Selfridges on various categories for over 25 years, so to have the chance to launch our own category (i.e. sustainable fabric care) with them has been a real privilege for me.

What obstacles have you faced whilst building w’air and how did you push through them?

Leading the launch of a completely new product technology from a new brand which is trying to establish a new category - almost completely during the pandemic - has brought on a few obstacles! Thankfully, we’ve got an outstanding internal team and a strong marketing agency partner which has supported us through the various delays, changes and inevitable issues which arise when bringing a new brand to market.

Beyond that, we’ve built a very strong network of partners (such as Selfridges, SneakersER and even our contract manufacturer) who have really gone the extra mile to make sure it came together in the right way.

How do you lean into fear?

Remain agile, learn quickly, and fail cheap! We’ve had to be incredibly flexible throughout the development pre-launch phase of the w’air project and even now, we're still challenged on a day-to-day basis with what the best positioning, messaging and comms approach is for the brand and the product. As long as we keep this agile approach, which means we can quickly discern what resonates with the consumer and build on that, then fear is always manageable…...

What’s next for w’air?

There is a lot in the pipeline! The hydrodynamic technology behind w’air is already fully patented across three different categories (fabric care, dental care and derma care) and we’re busy developing the dental care and derma care applications for launch over the next 12-24 months. In addition, we will explore and develop further applications ins due course, so watch this space!